Their Fond Pageant
by magnetosdaughter
Summary: MagnetoJean Crazy!Jean Chapter 3 is up please continue reading and reviewing Note: title was updated but it's the same story
1. A Meeting of Minds

**Title: **A Meeting of Minds

**Series:** Their Fond Pageant, Part One

**Fandom:** X-Men

**Pairing:** Magneto/Jean

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

**Author's Notes:** I am not the biggest fan of X3, but it did introduce to me the idea of Magneto and Jean as a rather tortured and entirely wrong couple. So I'm playing with it. This story follows the movieverse timeline (though it may bring in some elements of both Magneto's and Jean's past that are not directly shown in the movies) and begins after Xavier's death, Erik has brought Jean to his secret lair.

_Shall we their fond pageant see?_

_Lord, what fools these mortals be!_

Jean awoke with a start. Her eyes flicked rapidly side to side, taking in the rough walls, the bare floors, and the man sitting quietly in the near darkness.

"Erik."

"Welcome back, Jean." He spoke with quiet authority in an attempt to establish control early. She met his gaze a moment, then blinked away to peer about the room again.

"Where am I?" Her voice was low and she spoke with very little inflection.

"In my encampment. Well hidden from both the government and the X-men." He paused to watch her but the word drew no reaction. He continued, "You're quite safe, child."

Immediately she scowled and he knew he'd reached her. "I'm not a child."

"No. Of course not." He smiled. "Please forgive the conceits of an old man."

Her scowl turned into a knowing smile. "Don't try to fool a telepath, Erik. You don't think of yourself as old." He chuckled and stood. _This is going to be fun._ The thought was his but in his mind he heard the chuckle echoed in a woman's voice. She held his gaze as he walked across the room to sit by her side. He could feel her brushing his mind with her telepathy. He shied from the intimacy but knew in order to gain her confidence he must show her his trust. From his many years of friendship with Charles he knew how to lower the mental shields everyone commands without knowing it. Once this signal was given, the tentative brush turned into a connection stronger than any he'd shared with Xavier. She'd opened a direct two way mental communication between them.

He found himself reliving some of his earliest memories, they were spinning so quickly before him he couldn't identify the exact circumstances. His mother singing. His father cooking. A candle. A fence shaking. A billow of smoke curling into the sky. The flow of memory slowed and he found himself in Auschwitz, carrying the bodies of other children from the gas chamber to the fires. He felt Jean probing him, forcing him to relive the moment, together they felt his fear and pain coalesce into a dark and determined rage. A rage that fueled his survival. A rage that shaped his life. A rage that allowed the detachment required to carry the bodies of children who succumbed to the fear and pain; a rage that allowed the detachment required to sacrifice young Rogue, and others like her, to his plans; a rage that allowed the detachment required to leave Mystique behind. Satisfied, Jean returned to spinning through his memories.

He watched, somewhat less detached, as his younger self began anew after the war. Magda's smile. Rose petals falling. Anya's tiny hands reaching up to him. Then fire and Anya's screams. Darkness. Charles Xavier. Jean started with recognition, then confusion as if she'd forgotten she knew the man whose memories she was sharing. She watched Charles and Erik build their school together and the super computer beneath its walls. The years continued to fly by. Jean started again and now Erik smiled as she recognized herself walking down the stairs. She slowed the memory.

Erik had seen something in Jean instantly, he'd been drawn to the power she flaunted, the beauty she carried, he'd seen a power in her that spurned him on toward the man he eventually became, the one who couldn't stay working with Xavier in the school. Surprised by this revelation Jean allowed Erik to view the memory from her perspective. She'd paid little notice to him, far more interested in, and surprisingly frightened of, Xavier. But despite her focus on Charles she'd taken note of what he'd said about her. She'd tucked the memory deep within herself but he felt a warmth from her now. She realized he wasn't afraid of her.

The memories began to stir again and he watched as his relationship with Charles darkened until the confrontation that had left one man crippled and the other broken. Jean felt his regret deepen, felt the resurgent rage that allowed him to shut away his feelings as needed. Moments flickered by. Fashioning his helmet. Mystique's glowing eyes. Erik's flash of recognition while watching Jean speak before congress. Again she was interested in what he thought of her and surprised to find he was sad to see her. He barely recognized the fiery girl he'd met. Jean blinked as the memory stream continued. Jean's own memories began to overlap with his. Senator Kennedy's fear. The Statue of Liberty. Rogue's defiance. Logan's biting remark that Magneto should be in the machine in the girl's place. Erik noticed Jean hesitated when Logan appeared. Jean noticed Erik was affected by Logan's words. They both shied from the memory and shaken, Jean forced the stream onward furiously.

The memories were spinning by so quickly now Erik couldn't identify anything. Jean was no longer trying to share his memories, she was filtering through them, searching for something she couldn't remember herself but knew was important. She stopped suddenly when she saw herself, shining eyes and face twisted into a visage she barely recognized. She watched from Erik's perspective as Charles Xavier's atoms were dispersed in a blaze of light and power.

"NO!" The noise Jean made was barely a word, it was pure anguish. Erik was flung from her mind. The room was shaking around him as Jean's telekinesis escaped her control. He could feel echoes of her mind and tried to reestablish the mental connection but all he got for his efforts was an image of Logan holding Jean's face. Unable to think of anything better to do Erik mimicked the image.

"Jean. Jean! Look at me!" He grasped her face, pulled her gaze down until she was looking directly into his eyes. "Jean." Her eyes were wide with fear and loathing but he had her attention.

"I didn't mean to." Her voice was like a child's. He nodded.

"I know." As he spoke he realized the truth of his words. He understood better than anyone could the pain she was feeling, the self-hatred that was eating at her. He projected this revelation at her. Though he had no sense that she was receiving him telepathically he continued to send his words mentally as well as verbally. "I know, Jean. I understand. We can work through this together." He felt her mental touch again and allowed her access to his memory of Charles, his own despair that the man who when all was said and done he'd loved was gone. Time stood still and the room faded away again as their thoughts and feelings merged. Erik felt a tear slip from his eye, watched as its match fell down Jean's cheek, her expression a mirror of his anguish. Then he felt something shift, felt her access once again the rage that sat in his core and allowed him to play the monster when needed. She blinked once and the child disappeared, replaced by the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen. She was hardly recognizable as the woman he knew, she barely appeared human at all. Her eyes were alight with fire, her body glowed with an undefined power. He realized she was no longer simply in his mind. She was everywhere, within him and without. Something primal stirred in the air between them and without thought he let her go just long enough to pull her into a passionate embrace.

End Part One

Thank you to AngelofSnow for the beta!


	2. Blood Red, Deep Purple

**Title:** Blood Red, Deep Purple

**Series:** Their Fond Pageant, Part Two

**Fandom:** X-Men

**Pairings:** Magneto/Jean; assumes Magneto/Mystique

**Additional Characters:** Pyro

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

"Tell me a story." Jean demanded. It was the first time she'd spoken aloud in hours. Erik looked over. She sat with her knees curled up, his rich purple cape pulled around her like a blanket. With only her head peeking out above the cape and her hair falling into her eyes she looked small and young. However, her expression, while playful, was dangerous. He met her eyes and smiled broadly.

"I thought you weren't a child." He teased.

"I'm not," she replied, then for emphasis she let the cape fall to reveal her bare shoulders, rather changing the image she was projecting. "Tell me a story," she demanded a second time.

Bemused, Erik began speaking. "In ancient times they spoke of a creature, a firebird whose wingspan could block out the sun." Jean smiled and raised her arms with the cape dangling from them. "Her plumage was a rainbow of fiery colors." Jean flapped her improvised wings back and forth to his words. "Radiant orange. Brilliant yellow." He drew a hand through her hair. "Blood red." He let go as she shook her hair, heard her laughter inside his head. "Deep purple."

"The color of royalty." She interjected, dropping her arms to let his violet cape envelop her once again.

"Indeed." He answered, then continued. "This creature was strong and beautiful and her potential was greater than any other on the earth." He moved closer to Jean. "The power she could wield was that of all creation." He took her hand in his. "Life." He covered her hand with both of his own. "Death." He let go her hand. "Rebirth." Jean was watching him intently, her eyes bright and unblinking. He drew even closer. "She was power and life incarnate." His voice was deep, each word spoken with distinction. "And every time she died, she would rise again, more beautiful and more powerful than ever." Erik stopped speaking, Jean held his gaze a moment, her eyes seemed to be looking through him.

"Say her name." She implored.

Erik leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Phoenix." Jean pulled back suddenly, then stopped. Erik let the silence grow between them. When Jean turned back to him her expression had changed. Her eyes were bright with fire and her grin was mischievous.

"Okay," she said saucily. "My alias fits." She let the cape fall as she pushed him over with a thought. "So, what's a _Magneto_ exactly?" His laughter echoed in their heads even as she covered his mouth with her own.

xxx

Pyro was bored. More and more mutants were arriving every day but he'd never been particularly social. Mystique was gone and Magneto had been holed up in his chambers for a day. Pyro had wanted to accompany him on this recent mission to retrieve a powerful mutant but Magneto had brought his new flunkies instead. He'd explained they'd almost certainly meet up with the X-men and didn't want any additional problems - and the old man _had_ left him in charge of the camps. But when Pyro had seen who they'd brought back he suspected there was more to Magneto's decisions than he'd let on.

He'd got the story out of Juggernaut. The five of them had arrived in the middle of suburbia to find three others looking for the class five mutant Callisto had sensed. Pyro could easily identify them from Juggernaut's descriptions: "a hot chick with white hair who shot lightning out of her hand like that Sith guy" would be Storm; "a rude little guy with claws", Wolverine; and "a bald dude in a wheelchair who went inside with Mags" , the Professor. Juggernaut wasn't too good with the details but explained Magneto and the Professor had gone into the house and the Professor's companions had tried to follow. He, of course, would have easily subdued the scrappy little guy with claws while Callisto dealt with the chick but the house started flying. Then the strangest thing happened, it all stopped, Magneto showed up with the redhead and whisked them all away.

Pyro would have spoken against bringing her back and he knew that was precisely why Magneto had left him behind. If anything Jean Grey was _more_ of a goody-goody than Cyclops or the Professor. She was the very last member of the X-men Pyro would have picked to join the Brotherhood. And Callisto had said this mutant was the most powerful one she had ever sensed. But Pyro had always thought Dr. Grey's powers were pretty useless. It made no sense whatsoever that she was this mutant allegedly more powerful than Magneto. And then, more to the point, she was supposed to be dead.

Pyro had only been with Magneto and Mystique for a few weeks when they'd heard about Jean's death. Mystique had seemed rather pleased until she noticed Erik was affected by the news. He'd shut himself up in his room for a day then too. Mystique had explained there was some history there that she didn't know, something to do with Xavier. Mystique had been easy to talk to. Pyro missed her.

So if Jean Grey was not dead and was in fact the most powerful mutant on the planet...that still did not make her any less of a goody two shoes as far as Pyro was concerned. And one thing she _had_ always been good at was getting people to agree to things they maybe didn't really want to. Like going to Xavier's in the first place, Pyro remembered. And for some reason everyone was in love with her - Scott, Logan, Xavier...

And according to Mystique there was some history between Magneto and Jean. Something she didn't know which meant it was something he didn't want to tell her. Which meant no matter what it was it probably wasn't good that they were holed up together now. Especially if she really was super powerful. He'd have to watch the situation.

Pyro scowled and continued to watch the new mutants arrive. After all, Magneto had left him in charge.

xxx

"We'll need to find you something more appropriate to wear." Erik said as he pulled his cape on.

Jean smirked from the bed. "You don't like me like this?"

Erik turned. "My dear girl. I adore you like this." She smiled. "However, it is somewhat distracting."

"Mystique never wore clothes." Erik paused, surprised at how much it hurt to hear her name. He realized belatedly Jean wasn't allowing him to bury his memories and feelings as he normally did but was instead forcing them to the surface.

"Stop it."

Jean stood, still smirking. "Stop what?" As Erik watched she covered herself in feathery blue scales.

"Stop _that_!" He willed his eyes to close but she was inside his head. With a quick flick of his hand he brought his helmet to him. As he lifted it toward his head Jean's eyes narrowed and Erik felt the energy between them shifting. He lowered the helmet, a peace offering and a plea. "Jean, please!" Jean looked at him, nodded and the scales disappeared. She cocked her head at him and he knew he was alone inside his head.

"She could be anyone you wanted. That's why you liked her so much." Jean spoke simply, quietly, but with authority. She'd plucked the information from his brain. Erik just looked at her. "Who did she want you to be?"

Erik shook his head and answered honestly, "I don't know." His voice was barely above a whisper. Jean continued to look at him searchingly. Then she swiftly stepped across the room. She drew up next to him, kissed him softly on the cheek, then spun away and almost ran back to the bed.

"I'm tired," she said and curled up into herself again. Erik nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Her control was precarious. She was dangerous, he would have to be more careful. His cheek was warm where she had kissed him. He watched her until he was certain she was asleep, turned on his heel and left her behind. As he started to climb the steps she stirred and he heard her thought quietly in his mind again.

_Don't worry, I'll find something to wear._

End Part Two


	3. Hide and Seek

**Title: **Hide and Seek

**Series:** Their Fond Pageant

**Fandom: **X-Men Movieverse

**Pairing:** Erik/Jean

**Additional Pairings: **Scott/Jean, Logan/Jean, Charles/Erik, Hank/Ororo

**Rating: ** PG-13

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

**Author's Notes:** This chapter took some time to write, it's the beginning of why I started writing this fic. Jean's not quite right in the head and it starts to show.

"Ready or not here I come!" Jean crept around the corner, her eyes darting from side to side. The corridor was silent and dark. Jean was tempted to use her telepathy but knew the others would consider that cheating. It wasn't fair, really, it's not like Hank can turn off his heightened senses. But Scott would whine about fair play if he thought she used her gift to find him. Sighing Jean kept her mind closed as she walked slowly down the hallway. She didn't see or hear anything unusual in the kitchen or the library but a curtain was moving in the living room.

"Gotcha!" cried Jean, pulling the fabric aside to reveal Ororo huddling on the floor.

"How'd you find me?" the other girl asked petulantly.

"Wasn't a breeze anywhere else." Jean answered, "Now you help me find the others."

"Okay, I'll look upstairs. I bet Hank's up there." Jean watched Ororo leave thoughtfully. Lately it seemed there was something between those two but she couldn't be sure. Ororo was much less angry than when she'd first come to the mansion but she still wasn't exactly warm and friendly. Jean had been so happy when the professor told her another girl was joining them, she'd insisted on coming with him to get her. But Ororo was nothing like Jean. She was wound so tightly it hurt to look at her. Jean knew she should be patient, after all she'd been working with Xavier for some time and Ororo was still dealing with getting her powers under control. But she was sad that the girl seemed closer to Hank than herself.

Jean walked into the Professor's office to find him looking out the window, a sad expression on his face. She watched a moment, wanting to say something, wanting to tell him she understood, felt the same even. But she didn't know how.

"Hey." She said, hoping he'd simply read everything she wanted to say, that's what telepathy was for. But as he turned toward her she knew he was shielding his thoughts, all she got was the vague thought that now was not the time for introspection.

"Jean, I'm glad you found me." He smiled and wheeled himself over to the desk. He used the chair as if it had always been a part of his life although the accident had happened less than six months before. "We're getting a new student, a young man. He's in a bad state, I'm afraid - blew out a wall at a school dance. Says here he hasn't opened his eyes since, has barely spoken either. I hope you'll help him feel comfortable."

"Of course," she smiled, "I'll set up the room next to Hank's." He nodded and she turned to leave. At the door she turned back to find him looking off into the distance again, pain etched on his features. "Professor?" He met her eyes but the words stuck in her throat. He smiled sadly.

_I know. _ She heard him say in her head. Then, aloud, "Set up the room beside yours."

"But - " She started but was unsure what to say. The room wasn't exactly Erik's since he'd never slept there more than four times that she knew of. But it wasn't not his either. It had stood empty since he'd left, Jean hadn't even gone inside.

"It has the best view." Xavier offered as explanation. Jean stared at him.

"You said he can't open his eyes."

"Precisely why he deserves the best view. It will be something to work towards." Jean had no response to that, simply nodded and turned to go again. As she left she heard him in her head again. _It's for the best, Jean. We need to move on._ Anger welled up in her but it went as quickly as it came, leaving her tired. She shook her head and walked toward the stairs.

Ororo and Hank were standing on the landing. "Is Scott up there?" Jean asked Hank but he shrugged.

"We'll be in the library, okay?" Jean nodded and continued upstairs. She walked down the hallway to Scott's room. Jean flicked the light on and stood a moment in the doorway. The room was sparsely decorated - bed, chest of drawers, end table, bookshelf. It was so clean Jean couldn't imagine anyone Scott's size could find a place to hide. She peered under the bed, opened the closet, nothing.

She heard a noise in the hall. Unable to think of anywhere better she hurriedly hid under the bed. Seconds later she heard the door open, watched as expensive italian shoes and tailored slacks walked across the floor. She held perfectly still, holding her breath. He walked to the middle of the room and spun slowly around, then he seemed to be walking away. Jean relaxed slightly and immediately the bed began to shudder around her. Yelping she scampered out from under it. Erik smiled down at her and with a flick of his wrist the bed settled.

"That's not fair!" Jean said hotly.

"Dear girl, I am at a disadvantage in this game. Charles can hide in plain sight with a thought, Mr. McCoy has the nose of a basset hound, Miss Munroe could float up to the ceiling should she wish to - "

"We're not supposed to use our powers."

"Why?"

"It's not fair - "

"To whom, Jean? We are all mutants, no one is at a disadvantage, even Charles would agree." He clasped his hands and raised an eyebrow.

"I can't do - "

"Jean Grey, you are the most powerful mutant I've ever encountered. You can do _anything_." He held her gaze a moment; confusion, frustration, anger and fear played out on her face. "Come on, we'll find the others." He turned on his heel and walked out the room. She watched him leave, then ran after before the door closed.

Jean tore back down the stairs, exasperated. To hell with Scott's morality she was going to use her telepathy to end this game. The mansion was just too big not to, she didn't want to be running around for the next hour or more. She sent out little tendrils of thought as she walked down the hallway yet again. Something stirred in the study. She ran inside.

"Charles!" Jean ran over to the professor seated by the fire and threw her arms around him. "Charles I want you to be the very first one to know!" She paused to catch her breath and completely forgot how to use her telepathy. Charles grinned at her wild wide eyed smile.

"You said yes."

"You knew? He told you?"

"Let's say he needed encouragement." Her elated expression faltered. "He's shy about these types of things Jean, he simply wanted to bounce the idea off someone. It's a big commitment." She nodded and lay her head on his lap.

"I'm happy Charles. He makes me happy."

"I'm glad." He lay a hand on her hair and something stirred between them. Jean looked up, confused.

"Something's wrong." She looked at Xavier. "You don't approve."

"Jean, listen to me. I have never wanted anything but happiness for either of you. I love you - both - more than words can say." She looked at him, through him, into his mind.

"You're afraid. You're afraid of me. What I can do. What we can do."

"Jean, _you_ should be afraid."

"Leave me alone." She stood, shook her head, felt tears springing up in her eyes. "This isn't right. You shouldn't be here. I'm looking for Scott. Not you. Scott."

"Jeannie, Scott's gone." Logan's eyes were rimmed with red, she'd never seen him so weary.

"He's not gone, he's just hiding." Her voice was harsh, raw. She ran out of the room. "Scott! Scott!" She called out, her voice cracking in desperation, tears falling freely now. "Scott! Please come out. SCOTT! I don't want to play anymore!" She ran down the hall blindly and tripped.

"Jean!" Ororo ran up to her, her long white hair flying. "Are you okay?"

"Yes...I..." she shook her head, blinked. "Sorry, were you saying something?"

"Is it true about you and Scott?"

"Oh, yes!" She smiled, "He finally asked me out. We're going to dinner."

"What are you going to wear?"

"Well, I don't know 'Ro. It's not like he doesn't see me every day. He's seen me in my pjs and pigtails."

"It's your first date! It matters. C'mon, let's go look in your closet." Ororo pulled Jean through the mansion and into her room. She opened her closet and started making a pile on the bed. "No. No. No. Maybe. No. Maybe. No. Ooh, good. No. No. Mmmm. What's this?" She pulled out a long garment, it was a deep dark purple and looked expensive.

"I don't know."

"It's weird, look it's pants and like a coat?"

"Put it back."

"No this is good. You always wear red and pretty girl clothes. This is different. It stands out. Here, put it on." Jean took the outfit with trepidation but Ororo was her closest friend and she did usually dress more fashionably than Jean did herself. She put it on and Ororo steered her over to the mirror. "What do you think?"

Jean looked at herself in the mirror and didn't recognize the woman who looked back. Her hair was long, down to her waist and bright red. The deep purple suit shimmered, the long lengths of cloth made her seem long and tall. "It's perfect," she answered.

"So you think he'll like it?"

"Of course he will. It's his favorite color." Jean smiled and turned to Ororo. "I'm sorry," she blinked and Ororo disappeared. Jean walked out of the room.

"Did you find Scott?"

"No."

"I tried to tell you."

"Logan, you shouldn't be here." She turned her back on him and Jean was alone.

xxx

Erik walked down the stairs quietly, he didn't hear anything and if Jean was sleeping he didn't want to wake her. He found her exactly as he left her, curled into a ball on the bed. Sitting beside her he drew a hand through her hair. She stirred slightly but didn't wake. He tucked in next to her and pulled her in close to him, seeking comfort as much as giving it, and drifted to sleep.


End file.
